open for evening classes tonight (evening classes were canceled last night however)

_________________“We will expect success in all endeavors and be prepared to assess and hold ourselves accountable when we aren't successful. Tulane is a top 40 academic institution and it should expect nothing less from its athletic department.”--Troy Dannen 11.5.16

Last edited by WaveProf on Wed Jan 17, 2018 8:56 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Let's just say that my house temperature is 52 in spite of the heat running full blast, we have no running water because all of the pipes are frozen over (hopefully not burst), and the "snow" on the ground and roads is more like a solid sheet of ice.

I've lived in New York City, Ohio, and the mountains of Virginia. I've visited Philadelphia and Winona MN in January. And the worst winters I've been through, by far, have been in New Orleans.

A low of 23 with rain/sleet/snow is not something this city (nor these houses) is built for.

_________________“We will expect success in all endeavors and be prepared to assess and hold ourselves accountable when we aren't successful. Tulane is a top 40 academic institution and it should expect nothing less from its athletic department.”--Troy Dannen 11.5.16

I do remember ridiculous building practices like water pipes running outside to 2nd floors. Those houses must be lots of fun today.

I do remember at least one of my apartments where the water entry pipe popped up out of the ground and then turned in through the side wall. I noticed it because we had some freezing temps that year. It was, of course, completely uninsulated. "Leave that water trickling!"

TUPF wrote:

...they must look like Joey Tribiani wearing every stitch of clothing now.

FWIW my heat situation at our current house (which we own) is far superior to the one we used to rent when I was still teaching at Tulane. There, the heating was so bad that our olive oil froze every winter (we had to give it a warm water bath to cook) and the thought of showering at home in winter was so horrific that we went to the gym EVERY SINGLE DAY just so we'd have an excuse to shower there. Yes, a communal group shower was preferable to showering at home. That's a New Orleans winter for you.

_________________“We will expect success in all endeavors and be prepared to assess and hold ourselves accountable when we aren't successful. Tulane is a top 40 academic institution and it should expect nothing less from its athletic department.”--Troy Dannen 11.5.16

Let's just say that my house temperature is 52 in spite of the heat running full blast

As the resident HVAC engineering professional, that doesn't mean New Orleans is bad at winter, that means your house is poorly insulated and the heating is undersized. As I believe you've said you're in an old house, I'm guessing the former is true, and therefore there's probably no reason to try to fix the latter (unless you like throwing money away).

WaveProf wrote:

I've lived in New York City, Ohio, and the mountains of Virginia. I've visited Philadelphia and Winona MN in January. And the worst winters I've been through, by far, have been in New Orleans.

Coastal humidity plus cold do not mix. That's the part that has to do with New Orleans being "bad at winter".

Spot on on both counts Pete. Our downstairs heater is fairly new, and maybe slightly undersized, but not massively. But it can't keep up with floors that let air in, 14 foot ceilings, and a huge staircase that carries all of the heat straight up the stairs. Houses here were built to INCREASE air flow (for summer), which is counterproductive in winter. We've had plans for years to put insulation under the house, but it will have limited effect. Most houses here are just that old.

In other news, my wife is currently laying on her back under the house with a hairdryer going at the frozen pipes!!!

_________________“We will expect success in all endeavors and be prepared to assess and hold ourselves accountable when we aren't successful. Tulane is a top 40 academic institution and it should expect nothing less from its athletic department.”--Troy Dannen 11.5.16

Back in my childhood when we were poor and our family lived in a trailer in Rhode Island winters (worst combination of temperatures cold enough to freeze the seawater bay, plus everpresent humidity), my father used to swear by those electric wrap tapes to keep the water pipes from freezing under the trailer. If those are still around, they might help you, prof. Better than constantly leaving faucets running.

Spot on on both counts Pete. Our downstairs heater is fairly new, and maybe slightly undersized, but not massively. But it can't keep up with floors that let air in, 14 foot ceilings, and a huge staircase that carries all of the heat straight up the stairs. Houses here were built to INCREASE air flow (for summer), which is counterproductive in winter. We've had plans for years to put insulation under the house, but it will have limited effect. Most houses here are just that old.

In other news, my wife is currently laying on her back under the house with a hairdryer going at the frozen pipes!!!

Why not just get insulation it works both ways) and the the AC and Heat will solve the issue

Yeah, prof, if you can afford the insulation, you can't go wrong. It will save $ in the summer too. Put it below the pipes if possible so they are within the house envelope and not subject to freezing.

Or, as TUPF said... "pipe tracing" is an option. Enough heat from the wire to keep the temp at 33 and then insulate around the pipe and wire. Heck, in New Orleans you could put it on a switch in the house (rather than automatic temp controls), since it would be needed so infrequently and you'd have warning when you needed to turn it on.

We have good insulation in our back wall, and plans to add it to the other walls. But basically we need all new siding one side at a time (the previous owner used a cruddy contractor who improperly installed hardy backer on one side, and used unpressure treated wood in other spots). It's expensive to get into the walls to do the insulation, so we've been doing the insulation "as" we've had the money to re-do the wood siding. The major wall that needs it most is next in line (this spring), unless pipes are busted and uses up that money getting it fixed lol (we are still without water, but my guess is the pipes are just frozen).

We already had plans to install insulation under the house ourselves this spring, and recently added plans to put stuff around the pipes while we are under there.

_________________“We will expect success in all endeavors and be prepared to assess and hold ourselves accountable when we aren't successful. Tulane is a top 40 academic institution and it should expect nothing less from its athletic department.”--Troy Dannen 11.5.16

_________________“We will expect success in all endeavors and be prepared to assess and hold ourselves accountable when we aren't successful. Tulane is a top 40 academic institution and it should expect nothing less from its athletic department.”--Troy Dannen 11.5.16

Let's just say that my house temperature is 52 in spite of the heat running full blast, we have no running water because all of the pipes are frozen over (hopefully not burst), and the "snow" on the ground and roads is more like a solid sheet of ice.

I've lived in New York City, Ohio, and the mountains of Virginia. I've visited Philadelphia and Winona MN in January. And the worst winters I've been through, by far, have been in New Orleans.

A low of 23 with rain/sleet/snow is not something this city (nor these houses) is built for.

Sorry Prof, but I cannot agree. I was born and raised in NOLA, but then spent 14 winters in Minneapolis. There is absolutely no comparison and you only embarrass yourself to suggest NOLA is worse. My first winter set the record for the most consecutive days with the high under 32 -- over 100 days. Have you been outside at -35 degrees? Twenty four inch snowstorms on successive Saturdays? I do take your point about houses in NOLA.

_________________"You're not here on scholarship to lose. I didn't recruit you to lose. Losing is abnormal; losing is unusual; losing is unacceptable. That's not what we're here for."Bob Knight

Sorry Prof, but I cannot agree. I was born and raised in NOLA, but then spent 14 winters in Minneapolis. There is absolutely no comparison and you only embarrass yourself to suggest NOLA is worse. My first winter set the record for the most consecutive days with the high under 32 -- over 100 days. Have you been outside at -35 degrees? Twenty four inch snowstorms on successive Saturdays? I do take your point about houses in NOLA.

I said I visited MN in January. Not experienced a full winter. I'd fully anticipate that a full winter in MN would get to me more than a full winter in NOLA. But my worst winters in NOLA have been worse than my worst winters than anywhere I've lived (NYC, Virginia, Ohio). And my worst winters in NOLA got to me worse worse than the 3 days I spent in Winona in January of 2010 or 2011. And, yes, Winona was bad. They were excited because it "warmed up" to six degrees on the day I landed

It's also fair to say that some winters in NOLA it barely feels like winter at all, and that never happens any of the other places I mention.

_________________“We will expect success in all endeavors and be prepared to assess and hold ourselves accountable when we aren't successful. Tulane is a top 40 academic institution and it should expect nothing less from its athletic department.”--Troy Dannen 11.5.16

Sorry Prof, but I cannot agree. I was born and raised in NOLA, but then spent 14 winters in Minneapolis. There is absolutely no comparison and you only embarrass yourself to suggest NOLA is worse. My first winter set the record for the most consecutive days with the high under 32 -- over 100 days. Have you been outside at -35 degrees? Twenty four inch snowstorms on successive Saturdays? I do take your point about houses in NOLA.

I said I visited MN in January. Not experienced a full winter. I'd fully anticipate that a full winter in MN would get to me more than a full winter in NOLA. But my worst winters in NOLA have been worse than my worst winters than anywhere I've lived (NYC, Virginia, Ohio). And my worst winters in NOLA got to me worse worse than the 3 days I spent in Winona in January of 2010 or 2011. And, yes, Winona was bad. They were excited because it "warmed up" to six degrees on the day I landed

It's also fair to say that some winters in NOLA it barely feels like winter at all, and that never happens any of the other places I mention.

Well maybe if your house wasn't open to the elements.....At a minimum get a one unit heater for your bedroom. AlsoI predict another wavetot in October

_________________“We will expect success in all endeavors and be prepared to assess and hold ourselves accountable when we aren't successful. Tulane is a top 40 academic institution and it should expect nothing less from its athletic department.”--Troy Dannen 11.5.16

_________________“We will expect success in all endeavors and be prepared to assess and hold ourselves accountable when we aren't successful. Tulane is a top 40 academic institution and it should expect nothing less from its athletic department.”--Troy Dannen 11.5.16

I dont mind the approach to staying warm. Just not open to the "second wavetot" in October idea

_________________“We will expect success in all endeavors and be prepared to assess and hold ourselves accountable when we aren't successful. Tulane is a top 40 academic institution and it should expect nothing less from its athletic department.”--Troy Dannen 11.5.16

Our house ended up busting a pipe wednesday night, and still no water. Finally got a plumber out today, but he couldn't get replacement parts because they are sold out all over town.

Water pressure very low in dorms and campus. Students asked to limit showers and toilet flushing. Bottled water handed out for free for drinking all over campus.

_________________“We will expect success in all endeavors and be prepared to assess and hold ourselves accountable when we aren't successful. Tulane is a top 40 academic institution and it should expect nothing less from its athletic department.”--Troy Dannen 11.5.16